Having the cat declawed helps. At the shelter ask these questions. They would know..

I have lived with the "cat whisperer" we obtained a "wild kitten and had the cat in a box for a day. The next day the cat was mellow and tamed. Cats learn where to go for potty quickly and basically they will roam around the apartment.

Start with inexpensive cat food and see how they do. Later a cat will get finicky and not eat all their food.

Some folks think that declawing is inhumane. I would think you still want a mouser and a cat that can survive periodically go outdoors. Then for sure do not de claw the cat because their claws help them get mice and defend themselves. It is cheaper and better to get a scratching post for cats.

Because cats do not need as much attention as dogs, that is a good thing. However do not get another opposite sex cat and not have them fixed. You could easily become a cat lady when they multiply.

@PPhilip - My boss has 3 (I think?) cats and I think 1 or 2 of them are declawed just because they were that way when they got them. His wife thinks declawing is the most awful thing ever and I have read of others who thought the same thing. On the off chance the cat gets out of the apartment, it might not be able to defend itself against other cats or other dangers that might attack it. If the shelter cat I get is not declawed I don't think I will declaw it. Scratching posts don't look too expensive so I guess I will get a little one. No big kitty condos, don't have room for those.

I don't like the idea of declawing cats. Declawing is basically amputation, which sounds unpleasant, especially when it is unnecessary. I have never purchased a scratching post before, mostly because my cats love to claw wicker so I just let them claw my wicker hamper. It doesn't matter to me. My parents have this big carpeted pole in the middle of their living room (part of the reason they bought the house, quite honestly) and the cats LOVE to climb it. So as long as you have something (when I moved out of my parents' house I bought a basket specifically for Pika to scratch, it was on sale for like three dollars), in my experience a scratching post isn't necessary.

1. Litter - I use feline pine, whichever is the clumping kind. I can't remember. It's really light-weight, but doesn't seem to track all over the house any worse than the clay brands. I find it odor-absorbs very well, since I'm really terrible about frequently cleaning the litter box and I have two cats and it can go for days before I remember. There's an unfinished bathroom off of my bedroom, and that's where I keep the litter box. My parents keep theirs in the corners of the most-unused rooms, or in the laundry room (in front of the dryer, which is actually rather inconvenient, because then as you're moving clothes from the washer to the dryer wet clothes will fall into the litter box and then you have to wash them again). I would recommend putting it somewhere where you don't walk often, because there will be a bit of tracking of litter no matter what and it can be an unpleasant sensation to step on it. But as long as it's out of the way you can just sweep/vacuum ever week or so and it's no big deal.

2. Food - What I use right now is Purina (I think? I would recognize the bag. It might be Science Diet.) urinary tract formula, because Pika had urinary tract problems for awhile. We bought specialty food from the vet, which was super expensive, but then we switched to this and she's been doing just fine for almost a year now (wow, it's been a year?). Her brother also has urinary tract problems, and my parents buy him expensive food, not sure what it is. There are lots of options, like gluten-free cat food - apparently gluten is a common cat allergy - but probably the easiest thing would be to ask what food they feed him/her at the shelter and then just buy that. Some shelters have contracts with specific companies where they buy their food at a discount, and some either give small bags of food with the adopted animal or have them available for sale there. If you buy a small-medium sized bag (with one cat, that's what I would suggest) of whatever the shelter fed the cat, you can transition him/her to a new food when you start running out if you don't like it at that time.

Another idea - I keep my cat food in one of those pop-up-lid trash cans. It's pretty easy, and less annoying than having a bag of cat food lying around. Although if you adopt a particularly greedy and clever cat, I'm sure he/she would have no problem breaking into this food storage. We had a cat once who figured out how to open the food when we kept it in a gallon-tub ice cream container, with the lid on it (she'd put her paws on the handle and pry open the lid with her teeth).

Another other idea - I would recommend dry food over wet food. Dry food helps clean their teeth more. Although cats do love it if you, say, mix their wet food and dry food together from time to time.

3. If they've been kept in a super-cold room at the animal shelter (which is probably not the case, since shelters are traditionally low on money and cooling rooms to that extreme is expensive) then I'd keep the AC on just at first, but even if you don't do that I'd recommend that you keep the house within a range. Like, maybe keep the AC set on 85 or something. Maybe you can even phase that out, and eventually have the cat used to AC sometimes and no AC other times (since, you know, indoor-outdoor cats are used to that, it's totally possible). Although as long as the cat is acclimated they can withstand heat/cold or hot-cold changes just fine.

4. To be honest I don't really understand the cat-proofing part... especially the part about keeping toxins out of lower cabinets. Because... cats can jump. Like, totally. I've never had a problem with cats chewing on cords (puppies or bunnies, however, are different stories), although I did have one cat unplug our computer once because she was exploring behind the desk and became tangled in the cords. The amount of -proofing you'll have to do depends on the cat. With Pika, I could get by with doing absolutely no proofing whatsoever. With Eleanor, I keep the toilet paper under the sink, I keep the caramel creams in my dresser drawer (for some reason she likes caramel creams, or at least she likes to crinkle the wrappers), and I keep all breakable plates/glasses/etc. away from the edges of counters. For an unknown cat, I'd just worry about glasses and plates and stuff. I seriously doubt the cat will bother your papers - if anything, she/he will just lay on top of them.

5. When introducing the cat, I would let him/her out in one room of the house first, and have the food/water/litterbox available in that room (probably the bedroom, since that would be the most likely room to have a door). You live in a small apartment, so it's probably not a huge deal, but it's less overwhelming to deal with just one room first. When we get new cats or move with cats, we usually put them in the litter box first thing, even if they don't have to go, just so at least it's been shown to them. You can move it later, as long as they know where it's been moved to. The cat might be well-adjusted enough immediately to be let into the rest of the apartment, but if she/he isn't, don't worry. There's a lot of over-stimulation at the shelter, and cats get over-stimulated by there not being as much stimulus as well (i.e., a quiet apartment), so just let the cat adjust. You can also always sit on the edge of your bed (if the cat's hiding under it, for example) and pull a string across the floor. That often works as a good introduction in my experience.

Looks like you've got all the answers you need. So I'll just add a congrats on your first kitty experience. You'll love it!!

I have 5 cats, they all have claws, and my furniture is just fine We have 3 fair-sized scratching trees that they get their scratching done on I use Petsmart's store brand food, Authority, and that works fine for them. I use pine pellet litter (no dust, and doesn't make quite as much of a mess, imo) and as long as they have enough toys and things to climb on, they'll be pretty happy. Fans help with heat. 

I would have to agree I love the crap outta my cat!! @MzSilver - 

@randaness - Ah, so much advice! You really are the crazy cat lady! ;)

I don't plan to get the cat declawed, but if it comes that way from the shelter, I obviously can't re-claw it. The thing about the wicker baskets is a good idea. I saw some scratching post/trees last time I was at the store that looked as though they were small enough to fit in my apartment and also not too expensive. I also have a few baskets that might work. The food-holding bin is a good idea, too. My mom has always had one of those for the dog food. I think I remember the shelter signs saying that they feed Science Diet to the cats, so unless that's crazy expensive I'll stick with that. Guess it depends on if the cat I get has some special needs.

The thing about letting them into one room, we did that with the dog when we first got him. He was only in the kitchen, partly because he wasn't totally housebroken yet and the rest of the downstairs has rugs/wood floors, and then we slowly got him acclimated to the rest of the house. I don't intend to get a tiny kitten so the cat might be well adjusted and comfortable immediately. But we'll see. :) Thankfully I don't own too many breakable objects, so I shouldn't have to worry too much about that.

@MzSilver - Thanks! I've wanted a cat for

. :)

@BandoHobbit - Oh, that's good to know about your furniture. I guess it all depends on the individual cat, I've known people who say their cats won't use the scratching posts, but maybe they aren't buying the right kind. The book I have talks about different kinds of posts and if the cat doesn't like it they won't use it. 

@artygirl101 - Cat grass, yes, thanks for reminding me about that. The book mentions that cats like to eat plants to aid the digestion (my mom's dog eats grass and leaves all the time) but there are some plants that are toxic. I have a couple of spider plants which I don't think are bad for them, but I'd like not to have the leaves eaten off of it! So that might be a good idea to get some of that. No worries about the neutering, all the shelter cats are before they're adopted, and if it's not already declawed I don't plan to pay for the procedure. Thanks for the advice! 

@promisesunshine - not sure yet if I'll get to the shelter today. Depends on time (many other things to do!) and even if I do I dunno if you can just waltz out with a kitty on the same day. Also, I don't have my dancing shoes. But I'm off Thursday and Friday so if I don't get it today I'll get it then, for sure.

I would buy big bucket-sized clumping litter and put baking soda in it for the odor. Experience will tell you when your litter is worn out and needs replacing.

Cats are very fastidious about their litter box so make it a high priority to keep clean. I cleaned the clumps out of the box every day.

If you want a very attentive personal manager whose a bit bossy, get  a male cat.  But both male and female need their hugs and affection.

So if you just want an animal around the house just for show, get a bird.  In spite of a poorly deserved reputation, cats are very, very affectionate.